1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to disc accommodation devices for accommodating optical discs, such as musical compact discs (CD), compact discs (CD-ROM) for computers, etc. More particularly, the invention is directed to such a disc accommodation device that permits quick and smooth insertion and removal of a disc such as an optical disc and that can reliably accommodate an optical disc without contaminating or damaging the disc.
2. Prior Art
A prior disc accommodation device includes a holder plate for holding a disc such as an optical disc in the center hole thereof and a lid member hinged to one side of the holder plate. This device is used for almost all commercially available musical compact discs. It is very simple in structure, and its functions are protection and packing of an optical disc. For such prior art disc accommodation device with the purposes of protection and packing of a disc, however, no consideration has been given to handling convenience in the insertion and removal of a disc. More specifically, to insert or remove an optical disc in or from the prior art optical disc accommodation device, cumbersome three stages of operation are necessary, i.e., holding the holder plate with one hand, opening the lid member with the other hand, and inserting or removing the optical disc with such other hand. Also, the lid member can be opened and closed only in one direction relative to the holder plate. Therefore, there is a problem that the lid cannot be readily opened if the top or lid of the device is taken as the bottom or oriented downwardly.
The above inconveniences in the insertion and removal of an optical disc are a serious problem when handling optical discs in a moving vehicle as well as in home or office installations. During driving of a vehicle it is difficult for the driver to load an optical disc into a compact disc player without interfering with driving. Thus, it is very dangerous to attempt to load a disc by releasing the vehicle steering wheel. In home or office installation, storage of a plurality of optical disc accommodation devices such that they are movable relative to one another necessitates the use of a rack or the like. Such a rack limits the number of optical disc accommodation devices that can be stored. Improvement therefore is desired of convenience and handling.